


Closure

by JustAnotherGhostwriter



Series: Rose Tyler and the Cracks of the Universe [3]
Category: Doctor Who, Doctor Who (2005)
Genre: F/M, Gen, almost a fix-it-fic, beware the ambiguous ending
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-09-13
Updated: 2013-09-13
Packaged: 2017-12-26 11:12:47
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,689
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/965265
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/JustAnotherGhostwriter/pseuds/JustAnotherGhostwriter
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Rose Tyler is off to save the Doctor. Her mission, however, gets held up by the appearance of some old friends and the promise of leaving things better than she did the last time she said goodbye.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Closure

**Author's Note:**

> Third and final installment of this series. It will probably make more sense if you read the other two first but it’s not a necessity. I just felt this had to happen because the one thing that still really irks me about The Stolen Earth/Doomsday is the writing between Jack and Rose. They didn’t even hug each other in the big ol’ hugathon that happened in the TARDIS. And I just don’t understand how you go from “Rose. You are worth fighting for” and “Oh yes!” with a happy hug when he finds out she’s alive to absolutely no interaction what-so-ever. So this is my way of sort of compensating for that.
> 
> This was directly inspired by and is dedicated to the insurmountably amazing The Silver Devastation on Tumblr, who is the best beta I could have ever asked for, who makes my day every day and who understands my love for the friendship threesome that is the Oncoming Storm and his Thunder and Lightning (which is a narcissistic reference to "The Many Names of Rose Tyler"). 
> 
> Use, reblog, edit, destroy etc as you will. I don’t care. Just if it is used for fic or art in some way please consider linking me? I love reading/looking.
> 
> [Part of the Great Fic Dump From Tumblr of 2013]

Rose had speculated many possible scenarios she’d be met with once she finally made the leap from Pete’s World to her old universe. These jumps, as she knew from her past experiences, were erratic at best. She could land anywhere and anywhen and even if she did land in the place they were aiming for – twenty-first century London, because that was the place she was most familiar with and thus the place that would be the best base for her and her team – there was a chance it had already changed too much for her.

 

The fear was not that she would not fit in any more – she’d never really belonged there in the proper sense. Her fear was that she was walking into something she would not be able to handle and that that would stop their mission to save the Doctor from The Silence. She’d had too much time to think about what could happen, and the closer she got to actually making the jump the more sinister her imagination became. So when she finally did lead the team of seven in the jump over to her universe she was sure she was ready for anything.

 

Some of her expectations had included being ambushed as soon as they landed, so when the world she was jumping to came into focus and she was met by people in shadows and carrying guns, she wasn’t too surprised. She was, however, taken aback when the leader spoke and she recognised his voice. And it was that shock – that sudden feeling of giddy hope and escalating delight – that had her ignoring the command to drop her weapon so she could say one name instead, tentative and yet so very hopeful, one hand ripping off the mask of the wolf that she wore.

 

(“ _Jack?”_ )

 

She hadn’t expected to find herself in the arms of Captain Jack Harkness mere minutes after landing in the universe she’d once called home. The body that was pressed so closely against hers was so familiar and she couldn’t help but grip the back of his trenchcoat as tightly as she could while her shaky, disbelieving, delighted laughter mixed with his. She hadn’t expected she’d have to tell her team to stand down, remove their masks and lower their weapons while Jack was trying his damndest to kiss her. She hadn’t expected to be released only to come face-to-face with her oldest friend, holding a weapon in one hand while the other was intimately interlinked with the hand of Martha Jones. She’d never suspected she’d see Mickey again, let alone on this half-crazy mission she was on and so, yeah, maybe she hugged him a little tighter than social norms would have stipulated but she refused to be sorry for that.

 

(She also refused – out of sheer respect for the both of them– to even think about the fact that the boy she’d rejected for the Doctor had married the girl the Doctor had rejected for her.)

She also hadn’t expected that Jack would be witness to only one conversation between her and Jake before he went off on a little bit of a hissy fit.

 

( _“You_ replaced _me? With_ him _? I’ll have you know, British and spikey, that I was the original sexy best friend who could cuddle her and flirt with her and kiss her sometimes without consequences or real meaning. I_ defined _that role_.”)

 

She wasn’t overly surprised by the flirting that followed.

 

( _“Wait, so you think I’m sexy?_ )

 

It was actually scary how well the two of them got along – her Jake and her Jack, both flirting as easily as they breathed and both coming up with innuendos so powerful being in the middle of their eye sex made her want to blush like a schoolgirl and go stand somewhere else.

 

Rose hadn’t expected that her Doctor would follow her. He’d obviously thought they would have moved away from the original landing spot by the time he chose to make the jump, so barrelling straight into Mickey and then hugging the surprised man half to death was something _he_ hadn’t foreseen. Rose was miffed – he was the one who had driven the whole paradox thing into her head over and over and over again – and a little exasperated that he figured it was his mission to save her on her mission to save him and the other Doctor, but when the world didn’t explode after ten minutes and the grin on his face stayed wide and delighted as he surveyed the friends he’d missed she let it slide.

 

And then her team was being accosted by Jack’s team so they could compare notes and gun sizes (Jack and Jake had far too much fun with that one) and whatever else and Rose suddenly found herself inside that universe’s Torchwood, sitting on a comfortable sofa with her head on the Doctor’s shoulder and Jack’s head on hers.

 

She had never expected this to be the outcome, but she couldn’t find a bone in her body that wanted to complain. This was familiar and somehow _right_. How many times had the three of them sat in similar ways on the couch in the sitting room of the TARDIS? How many times had she fallen asleep between the two of them, their rumbling voices (the Doctor’s had still been Northern-accented back then) lulling her into peace? How often had she and Jack hogged all the space so the disgruntled Doctor had had to sit in the armchair next to them before they laughingly took pity on him and shifted up for him? How many times had Jack bet her, quietly in her ear, that he could pull a move on the Doctor and convince him that it was her hand instead of his?

 

In short, this was life as she’d known it and it was so very, very good to know it again. They swapped stories of their respective universes. They started out as factual reports and ended up becoming stories of roguish hilarity that had the three of them in stitches and almost rolling around the couch. The bad times didn’t have to be mentioned. Not there. There, with the three of them sandwiched together, everything was safe. Just as it had been in the past.

 

In the middle of one of her tales – arms waving excitedly as she narrated and tried not to ruin the story by bursting into fits of giggles – Jack suddenly grabbed her hand. Not the one closest to him, but her left that had, until recently, been entwined in the Doctor’s. Rose silenced as Jack stared with the utmost seriousness at the two rings that rested on her ring finger. Jack suddenly snorted.

 

“Bit cheap, isn’t he? Couldn’t even get you a diamond.”

 

Rose felt the Doctor stiffen in utter indignation and had to duck her head to hide her smile.

 

“I’ll have you know that that stone comes straight from the Echoing Mines of-”

 

“Oooh, echoing? What, did they drop it and think it was twice the size it really is because it made a big noise?”

 

By now the Doctor was scowling quite heavily. “That jewel,” he started indignantly, but Jack cut him off again.

 

“Oh, relax. I know what it is. I’ve… uh… _acquired_ one or two in my lifetime.” He winked at Rose. “They were as lovely as the people I got them from.”

 

Rose couldn’t help but laugh at the both of them, happiness bubbling from inside of her. Gently, she freed her hand from Jack’s hold, but it was only so that she could wrap both arms around his neck and lean against him for a moment.

 

“I missed you.” The teasing was gone; this was genuine. “I still do.”

 

A kiss was pressed to the top of her head, long and gentle. “I know, Rosie. Me too.” And then Jack, being Jack, had to turn the situation back to teasing. Keep it light until they had no other choice. Make a loud noise to distract the people from the darkness for a little bit longer. That was Jack. “But you’re here now. And I’m here now. And you did always say you wanted to see me defrocked.”

 

Rose laughed at him, pulling away. “As tempting as that sounds, these aren’t just for decoration.” She wriggled her ring finger. And then, as a thought hit her, she frowned. “Although…” She turned to the Doctor. “Does that even count? Getting married in another universe? Does that count here?”

 

The Doctor replied with one of his speeches that started with “Weeeell” and ended with her being properly confused and trying not to look it. Jack saved her from having to come up with an answer by suddenly leaning forward, a wide, crazy grin that she knew too well spreading across his face.

 

“I know what we’re going to do tonight.” Rose opened her mouth to retort, but never got the chance. “You guys are gonna be getting married.” Two pairs of eyebrows rose at that statement. Jack just grinned harder. “What? I didn’t get invited to the last one, so you’ll just have to do it all again. It _really_ isn’t a wedding until Jack Harkness arrives and starts giving presents.” This time the wink was for the Doctor.

 

“You were actually invited,” the Doctor replied mildly.

 

“Your name was on the guest list,” Rose clarified. “Just in case, y’know?”

 

The smile Jack gave her in return was soft and without any type of leer or innuendo. His real smile.

 

“All the more reason to let me actually see it. Come on, guys. What do you have to lose?”

 

“Oh, I dunno. It was bad enough the first time.” This earned the Doctor a very well-aimed smack to the chest. He just grinned cheekily at his wife.

 

“Jack, this is crazy. We don’t have a place, a priest, a dress, rings… nothing.”

 

“My dear Rosie. You’re forgetting who you’re talking to. I’ve got people who’ve got suits for your boy toy, I’ve got people who can find you rings. I know people who hire out wedding dresses – don’t ask – and I happen to have Father Brian on speed dial.”

 

“You have a _priest_ on speed dial?  Why do you-? No, you know what? I don’t wanna know. I just don’t wanna know.”

 

Jack’s grin had turned disturbingly predatory. “So then the only thing left is to decide what role I’ll be playing. Hmm.” He narrowed his eyes and looked from the Doctor to Rose and back again. Then he smirked. “Maid of Honour it is. Sorry, handsome, but tonight I’m more interested in her naked body than yours.”

 

“I thought you didn’t have preferences.” The Doctor had amusement in his voice.

 

“I don’t. She’s just got a better bum than you. And I love her more.”

 

With that and a roguish grin, Jack grabbed Rose’s hand and pulled her off the couch and towards the door, silencing her protests with a “it’s bad luck to see the bride before the wedding”.

 

They passed the rest of the Torchwood teams and Jack happily told them the plan. It was a testament to their job descriptions that even the people who didn’t know Jack didn’t show shock or surprise. Jack half dragged a bemused Rose out the door, barking instructions about venue and tuxedos over his shoulder as he went. Rose was then taken to a very closed looking wedding boutique. Jack simply had to ring the doorbell and they were being ushered in to delighted cries. Getting a dress to lend was a little bit more difficult but after Jack flirted with the shop assistants and then the shop owner and then the owner’s husband, something was arranged. Rose was taken to the fitting room and was let loose on the rack upon rack of white gowns. She had no shame of taking Jack into the dressing room with her – they had never been anywhere close to _that_ since after they’d saved him from his exploding spaceship. The flirting was just… Jack. He made jokes about her taking off her clothes for him, of course, but his eyes only lingered on her once when she wasn’t fully clothed. And he wasn’t looking at her, really.

 

“You got a tattoo?”

 

Rose fingered the image that was on her chest subconsciously. “Yeah. For the first wedding. It’s Gallifreyan. Apparently it’s what they used instead of rings, or something.” She smiled fondly at the image of the strange writing on her pale skin. “It’s not even real ink. It’s some strange… magic paint.” She pulled a face at her inability to explain it right. “He got one too. Right in the place where the double hearts meet on a Time Lord’s body.”

 

“It suits you,” Jack said quietly, and she understood at once what he was actually saying.

 

It took a surprisingly short while to find a dress that Rose found gorgeous and Jack couldn’t find an inappropriate comment for. The shop assistants helped Rose pin up her hair in a slightly confusing yet admittedly pretty style. And, from somewhere unknown, they pulled out red roses for her hair. A quick stop to the first shoe store they could find, and then it was back to Torchwood, Rose receiving very strange looks from passersby.

 

The main control room of Torchwood had been hastily transformed so that a wedding could take place. Rose peeked around the door as people shuffled around a little frantically and found that Jack hadn’t been lying about knowing a priest. The Doctor was dressed in a dashing black tux with a white shirt and a slightly faded black bowtie. He was handsome enough to make her heart ache. Jack suddenly appeared by her side and linked his arm with his, just as Pete had done the first time she’d gone down an aisle in a white dress to meet the man she’d do anything for.

 

“You look beautiful,” Jack muttered to her as a tinny recording of the Wedding March started.

 

Dutifully, Rose stepped out as she was prompted and walked at an appropriate pace towards the Doctor, unable to keep from beaming at him. He beamed right back, positively glowing from the inside.

 

“Who gives this woman away to be wed?” the priest asked in a gravelly voice.

 

“I do.” Jack sounded so proud her heart ached even more. “Actually, I’m kinda giving them both away.” He met eyes with the Doctor, and his smile was crooked and the closest thing to looking brittle that she’d ever seen. “But it’s to each other, so that makes it more than okay.”

 

Jack placed Rose’s hand in the Doctor’s and, almost automatically, their fingers laced. Their hands were meant to be joined like that. The ceremony was simple and practical, nothing like the one back home where they’d both written their own vows (“ _I promise to love you even though we have curtains.” “I promise to love you even when you dismember our appliances.”_ ) but it was oddly just as wonderful.

 

(And there was a moment – just one – during the ceremony when she’d looked over and met Mickey Smith’s eyes and she’d remembered a time when she’d been so sure that would be the two of them one day. Mickey gave her a sad smile back, and then he just grinned a grin of genuine happiness for her. And the regrets faded and died once and for all.)

 

They were taken to a club for the reception (Jackie would have thrown a _fit_ had she known. Second-sort-of-fake-wedding or no, that was just _not on_ ) and everybody was too drunk to really care that there was a girl in a full on wedding dress in their midst. Surprisingly, the music that was played wasn’t that hard to dance to and Rose found herself pressed against her husband by weaving people, her hands in his hair. They stayed like that for at least ten songs before Jack – smelling a bit of alcohol – came barrelling over.

 

“You’re monopolising the bride!” he yelled accusingly, ripping Rose away and making shooing motions to the Doctor.

Jack was more daring in his dance moves, not as content as the Doctor was to just hold her close and move slightly to the beat. By the time the third song was done her hair was starting to fall out and she was pink in the face. But her eyes were shining and she didn’t tell Jack to let go. The next song was slower, and Jack finally just pulled her close and cradled her. For most of the song they didn’t speak.

 

“Jack? You know how you told me the last time you weren’t gonna say goodbye because you were so sure you’d see me again?”

 

“I don’t think we’re that lucky this time, sweetheart,” Jack said softly, his eyes suddenly ancient.

 

She tried a smile. “I know. I have that feeling too.”

 

He pulled her closer and they ignored the beat of the song just so they could hug each other as long as possible to make up for all the times in the future they wouldn’t be able to be there for each other.

 

“I’ll miss you.” Her voice was mostly even.

 

“Nah. You’ll have bigger fish to fry.” He squeezed her tighter. “And Rose?”

 

“Yeah?”

 

“I never did say thank you.”

 

She looked up at him in confusion. “What for?”

 

“For convincing him to come and save me from an exploding spaceship.” His lopsided smirk evened out. “And for being one of the first people in a very, very long time to love me and not be in love with me. Having family…”

 

Rose simply stood on her tiptoes and gave him a kiss on the cheek. “You are one of the most amazing men I’ve ever met. Don’t you ever doubt that.”

 

When the song ended, the Doctor appeared at their side, a worried pucker to his forehead as he saw the tears shining in his wife’s eyes. Jack distracted him by extending a hand.

 

“Well?” He waggled his eyebrows.

 

“The world doesn’t end because the Doctor dances,” the Doctor answered with a grin, and the gravity of the fact that he’d said _those_ words to _Jack_ …

 

She slipped away quietly, finding herself in the back corner with the members of the teams who were not going crazy on the dance floor. For a while she watched and laughed – especially at the Doctor and Jack who were doing some strange rendition of the tango to something that everybody else was fist pumping to. Her boys, she thought fondly and she couldn’t help but love them so much at that moment. Jack was being his usual self, holding on in the only way he knew how – by being loud. The light was flashing across the sky, brilliant but dangerous, and he was responding to it by being as overbearing as he possibly could. The closer the danger, the pain, the inevitable moment they’d have to return to being sombre the louder he was. Jack, she realized with a little thrill, was like thunder. The Thunder and the Oncoming Storm. Of course Jack belonged on that couch with the three of them.

 

A hand extended in her peripheral vision startled her out of her reverie. Mickey stood beside her, a hand extended and a wry smile on his face. Rose hesitated and sought out Martha. The woman just smiled at her and gave a nod of her head. And so Rose allowed Mickey to lead her to the dance floor, where they held each other at a distance that had never been there before. Rose was quite sure it was the span of a universe. Or was it the span of an extra beating heart?

 

“I’m sorry, Mickey,” she said eventually, unable to keep it in.

 

Mickey gave her a sad smile. “Ah, it’s alright.”

 

“No.” Rose shook her head. “No it isn’t. I was a right ass to you. I strung you along and I hurt you so badly and you just… you kept being there for me and I’m so sorry.”

 

“I always knew I wasn’t right for you.” His smile was still a little painful. “Knew right from the start. That’s why I hated him so much. He could give you what you deserved, what you were made for. I wanted that for myself.”

 

“I wanted backup. In case he was another Jimmy. In case… I didn’t wanna lose you, either.”

 

“We both made mistakes. It’s only human, after all. Yeah?”

 

“Yeah.” She gave him a wobbly smile. “And… well, we were friends right from the beginning. So we’ll be friends right until the end. Yeah?”

 

“Like you’d ever be able to get rid of me. I’m the tin dog, remember? You can’t be without me.”  

Rose laughed and Mickey’s forehead touched hers for a long while. “You take care of her,” she warned suddenly. “The Doctor’s told me how brilliant she is.”

“Oh, I know.” Mickey’s grin was radiant and Rose knew they’d both finally reached the point they were supposed to be at.

After their one song – their goodbye song, if she was going to be sappy and sentimental about it – Mickey returned to his wife and Rose returned to watching her husband and one of the best friends the universe had been kind enough to bestow upon her. She must have done something right somewhere along the line, she mused. And, yes, she was well aware that this was the last time she’d ever see any of those who belonged to this universe. In the morning, her team and her would move on. The Silence still existed, the other Doctor was still in danger, the Bad Wolf was still lurking below the surface in case it was needed. But in that moment – as Jack grabbed her hand and pulled her into the throng so he could teach her something called Gangnam Style – she was surrounded by friends, pseudo-family, the man she’d had the fortune to marry twice and the greatest captain she’d ever meet.

And she was content.


End file.
